Israeli media: Israeli officials visited Doha for talks over World Cup

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
7 Sep 2022 23:04
1 Shares

Israeli media says "Israel" wants to establish an interests office in Qatar to provide assistance to Israelis during the World Cup.

Israeli Kan channel revealed that Israeli officials visited Qatar recently to hold talks before the start of the World Cup.

About two months before the start of the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar, direct contacts are underway between the Israeli occupation and Qatar to establish a consular office to provide assistance to Israelis who want to attend the World Cup, Israeli media reported.

The Israeli Kan channel revealed that Israeli officials visited Qatar recently to hold talks on this matter before the start of the World Cup.

The channel cited unnamed sources as saying that "Israel" wants to establish an interests office to provide assistance to Israelis during the World Cup, but in Qatar, they are "coldly" dealing with the matter.

Kan mentioned that talks on this matter are still ongoing and have not yet come to a solution.

The Israeli channel claimed that Qatar sees the World Cup as an opportunity to strengthen itself in the region and work, among other things, to push for a solution to "the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

Israeli journalists will also be able to visit Qatar during the World Cup, but they will be required to apply for a special journalist's entry visa, Kan pointed out.

According to the Israeli channel, the Qataris were obligated, in accordance with FIFA rules, to agree to the entry of any Israeli who applied for an entry visa to attend the matches, however, they went further and eliminated the need for a visa.

Qatar allows Israelis to attend World Cup

In early June, the Israeli occupation Foreign Ministry announced that Israelis will be able to travel to Qatar to attend the 2022 World Cup games.

According to the Israeli Ministry, the agreement was reached with FIFA officials following months of talks and "efforts" put by the ministries of Foreign, Security, and Sports despite the failure of the Israeli team to qualify for the championship.

Israeli occupation Security Minister Benny Gantz welcomed "the coordination that was achieved for the benefit of sports fans in Israel.”

"Qatar is a country with international importance, contributing to maintaining stability in our region," Gantz said.

In late November, Qatar will host the first World Cup in the Middle East. Unlike neighbors, the UAE and Bahrain, Doha did not officially normalize ties with the Israeli occupation, but the announcement shows otherwise and might pave the way for another Arab state to normalization.